BBC NEWS | In Depth | Newsmakers | Michael Eavis: Godfather of Glastonbury Michael Eavis: Godfather of Glastonbury Andrew Walker BBC's News Profiles Unit Michael Eavis has been running the Glastonbury festival since 1970 The organiser of this weekend's Glastonbury festival is a 67-year-old Methodist dairy farmer with a penchant for Radiohead and the chutzpah to turn down Sir Paul McCartney. Take 150,000 music fans, a very large field, innumerable tents, add some of the world's greatest bands and what do you get? Quite simply: the Glastonbury festival. Sure, there are pretenders to the crown all around the world. Milwaukee has its long-running Summerfest, folkies still flock to Newport and Montreux provides an elegant and dramatic backdrop for its jazz. But Glastonbury is the undoubted daddy of them all, the sine qua non of youthful hedonism: more than a festival, a rite of passage. Enjoyed, sometimes endured, by generations of gilded youth. Big field.

Big sound But none of its trademarks, the first-class bands, the jugglers, fire-eaters, poets, veggies and others, would come together in such a manner each June, without the benign presence of the festival's creator and guiding light, Michael Eavis. Eavis is probably the best-known - certainly the best-loved - music promoter in the world. The Methodist dairy farmer - and proud owner of the 600-acre Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, has been welcoming festival goers to his patch since 1970. Back in those days, when entrance was ï¿½1 with a free pint of milk thrown in. Today, a ticket will set you back ï¿½105. Thirty years of music The loon-panted, tied-dyed hippy crowd of 1,500 swayed to bands like T Rex and Hawkwind, as well as the now-forgotten Amazing Blondel and Steamhammer. Farmer Eavis is resolutely a local man. Born in 1935, he was educated at the Cathedral School in nearby Wells and then a merchant naval college.

Best bib and tucker: Michael Eavis enjoys a night out at home He sailed the world, working for the Union Castle shipping line, before inheriting the farm on his father's death in 1958. In 1969, he and his second wife, Jean, spent a day at the Bath Blues festival. So impressed were they that they decided to hold their own festival, at home, the following year. Thus, a day after the death of Jimi Hendrix, a legend was born. Michael Eavis says his motives were simple: "I liked pop music and people so it seemed like a good idea to put the two together. It was all quite naive when we started, we really hadn't a clue." Jousting with authority And, even though the festival has grown a hundred-fold, his view still remains the same: book some bands, organise the food, other entertainments and security, sell tickets and give the profits to charity. Although it thrived during the 1970s, Glastonbury really took-off in the 1980s.

Seen by many as a rallying-point against Thatcherism, its pro-CND stance - guided by Eavis - brought political, as well as musical, relevance. And acts like Aswad, Elvis Costello and Billy Bragg combined pop and polemics. Still crazy after all these years The Eighties also brought the first confrontation with authority. New regulations meant that the festival had to be licensed by Mendip District Council - the start of an ongoing feud which is still rumbling today. Travellers rioted in 1990, the festival was cancelled in 1988, 1991 and 1996, to offer a breather to Michael and Jean Eavis (who died in 1999). And it did not take place in 2001 because of security fears. Today, a vast fence surrounds the site. But, largely due to Eavis himself, the festival is probably healthier today than ever. It must be, to have sold out within 18 hours, even before the line-up was announced. Labour candidate "He's incredible. Such a public figure - just like Santa," says Steve Sutherland, editorial director of the music paper, NME.

"He's generous, egalitarian, but a canny character. One minute he can be as hard as nails, the next he plays the naï¿½ve farmer. All to get what he wants, the best for the festival." Glastonbury calling: Eavis' festival is heard around the world His role includes hand-picking the acts, whether they be Bob Dylan, David Bowie or Oasis, and turning others down. This year, Michael Eavis said "thanks, but no thanks" to none other than Sir Paul McCartney. A number of years ago, another Beatle, the late George Harrison, received the same answer. But the man, like the festival, is about more than just music. He remains a committed environmentalist and stood for the Labour Party in Wells at the 1997 general election, losing but adding 16,000 to the party's vote. Now married for a third time, Michael Eavis has said that he will, one day, leave the running of the festival to his daughter, Emily. His will be a huge act to follow.

As Steve Sutherland puts it: "Ask anyone and they'll agree that the unique spirit at Glastonbury is mostly down to Michael." Michael Eavis | News and Photos | Contactmusic.com Glastonbury Festival Michael Eavis The worst opening for the Pilton festival yet? Glastonbury Festival goers are facing a major traffic crisis as they make their way down to Worthy Farm in Somerset for the biggest greenfield event in the world. The musical line-up doesn't even kick off until Friday, but already people are flocking in their thousands and bringing a whole load of congestion with them. Michael Eavis says traffic was caused by early arrivals Today (June 22nd 2016), Glastonbury 2016 opened and with it came gridlock. People have been queuing for more than 12 hours to get onto the site, with some even abandoning their cars to go and set up their tent. However, that's not been an easy job either as it's revealed that extremely muddy conditions and torrential rain are what's causing the delays. Glastonbury Festival Coldplay Adele Foo Fighters Michael Eavis But who will headline next year’s festival?

Tickets for next year's Glastonbury Festival have sold out in just 30 minutes. The 118,200 standard tickets went on sale at 9am on Sunday morning (October 4th), at a price of £228 plus £5 booking fee, with eager fans rushing to snap them up in just half an hour. Coldplay are among the favourites to headline Glastonbury 2016. A spokesperson for the festival told the BBC , "We have, once again, been staggered by the sheer number of people from around the world who hoped to come to the festival, with demand significantly outstripping supply." Glastonbury Festival Michael Eavis Labour MP Gareth Thomas believes that Glastonbury could be held in an outer London borough in 2023, if it wins a European Capital of Culture bid. Could the Glastonbury Festival one day be moving to London? An idea to temporarily relocate the legendary festival has been floated by Labour MP Gareth Thomas, who has suggested that the British capital would host it for one year in 2023 if London won the bid for European Capital of Culture.

Thomas, the MP for Harrow West, is campaigning to be selected as the party’s mayoral candidate. He suggested that Epping Forest or Hackney Marshes could be considered as one-off site for the festival, according to a report by The Independent . He would push for a special edition of Glastonbury as part of a series of “pop-up” arts and culture events throughout London, even the outskirts, during 2023, if he were elected as Mayor. Michael Eavis Glastonbury Festival The Dalai Lama will appear in the Green Fields on Sunday. China has issued a warning to the Glastonbury Festival organisers over their booking of the Dalai Lama. The Tibetan spiritual leader is to give a talk at this weekend's festival to promote a message of "compassion, non-violence and the oneness of humanity." Dalai Lama's booking at the Glastonbury Festival has caused a stir in China However, officials in China have warned that the Eavises' booking is tantamount to offering the Dalai Lama a platform to "engage in anti-China splittist activities," Reuters reports.

The leader is not scheduled to meet with officials in Britain, though China nevertheless is concerned that he may be intent on promoting his wish for an autonomous Tibet in the UK. Glastonbury Festival Michael Eavis The festival, which will open its gates to 135,000 ticket holders next week, may have to re-locate in the future because of planning difficulties to do with multiple land-ownership. Glastonbury has become one of the key dates in Britain’s social calendar over the last ten years, but a major shake-up of the festival could be on the horizon. Michael Eavis , the founder and organiser of the annual musical celebration, has admitted that it may have to move location in the future. With just a week to go until the 2015 edition, which will see headline performances by Florence + The Machine, Kanye West and The Who, 79 year old Eavis told Sky News on Friday (June 19th) that he does not own the entire site and, as a result, is finding it increasingly difficult to get the requisite commissions to stage the event each year.

Michael Eavis admits Glastonbury may have to re-locate in the future Kanye West Glastonbury Festival Michael Eavis Since Kanye was revealed as the Saturday night headliner back in March, co-organiser Emily Eavis has received a number of death threats. With a little under a month to go before it kicks off, probably the most talked-about thing about Glastonbury 2015 has been the booking of Kanye West for the Saturday night headline slot. In a new interview, the festival’s chief organiser Emily Eavis has revealed that she has received death threats as a result. Speaking with The Times , Eavis, 36, who runs the festival with her father Michael, stood proudly by their decision to book the rapper to headline the Pyramid Stage, but said that some of the abuse they’ve received has been “just horrible”. Michael and Emily Eavis, the father-daughter team behind Glastonbury Michael Eavis Could David Bowie be headlining Glastonbury 2015?

Michael Eavis , the founder of the Glastonbury Festival of Music and Arts, says he has booked three "excellent headliners" for 2015 though confirmed that Fleetwood Mac were not available. The legendary rock band have been the strong favorites to headline the festival next year, though Eavis debunked the speculation, also going on record as saying Queen are not in his thoughts, either. Michael Eavis has confirmed that all three Glastonbury headliners are now booked, but that they do not include Fleetwood Mac or Queen "Queen? Not Queen, no. Fleetwood Mac don't seem to be available at the moment. But we've got three excellent headliners for next year," he said, during an interview with Music Week. Pushed on his bookings, Eavis, 79, teased that one of the headline acts had "been around for a long time." Michael Eavis Metallica Dairy farmer and Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis has defended the decision to have heavy metal band Metallica headline the festival this year. Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis has defended the decision to have Metallica headline the festival this year .

There has been growing opposition regarding Metallica performing at the festival by festival-goers who don’t feel a heavy metal band is an appropriate headliner and animal activists who disagree with band member James Hetfield’s association with bear-hunting. Dairy farmer and festival founder Michael Eavis has defended the decision to have Metallica headline the festival Eavis has not been put off by either of these factors and has maintained he is “looking forward to seeing them.” He continued: “We have been going for so long that people don’t expect us to put on a heavy metal band. We had Rage Against The Machine and we have had lots of fairly heavy metal bands in the past but this is not a typical headline. We usually have bands like Radiohead, Coldplay and U2, the Rolling Stones, but I am really looking forward to them.” Glastonbury pioneer hanging up music festival wellies for a new generation | Music | The Guardian Glastonbury pioneer hanging up music festival wellies for a new generation • Michael Eavis says handover to his daughter has begun • 'Chaotic dairy farmer' tells of event's highs and lows Glastonbury festival founder Michael Eavis.

Photograph: Adrian Sherratt Close This article is 7 years old He has famously vowed to keep going until his 80th birthday. But Michael Eavis , 73, the eccentric dairy farmer and host of the world's best-known music festival, has announced plans to hang up his boots to make way for a "new generation" headed by his daughter, Emily, and her fiance. Sitting at Worthy Farm's kitchen table, the Glastonbury festival's headquarters for the past four decades, Eavis said the handover to his daughter had already begun, and he expected "two more full years" at the helm. He said his last festival is likely to be in 2011, five years earlier than expected. This week will see 140,000 festivalgoers troop to Eavis's Somerset farm for what has become an annual pilgrimage. Tickets sold out months ago. Eavis's retirement, when it comes, will mark the end of a remarkable career which has transformed a £1-a-ticket hippy gathering, with "free milk to all campers", into a British summer institution showcasing the best live music acts in the world.

His contribution to music was recognised last month in Time Magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential people, an accolade Eavis collected at a New York gala alongside Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama. He said the experience made him "nervous". "I like being a slightly chaotic dairy farmer who is a bit of a chancer and follows his heart. And then suddenly I'm on a par with Kate Winslet, Gordon Brown and Stella McCartney. I thought, 'Oh my god, have I got to behave myself now? Have I got to be more respectable?'" Glastonbury began in 1970 with a pink piece of paper handed out to locals advertising the arrival of the Kinks. "They had a number one with Lola at the time, so they couldn't really be playing a 'mini' festival," Eavis recalled. "The agent said 'they've all got laryngitis – medical certificates are in the post'." Their replacement turned out to be Marc Bolan and his band, T-Rex, establishing the event's musical reputation. The following year David Bowie and Hawkwind took to the very first pyramid-shaped stage.

In the 1980s, Eavis established the event as a bastion of the left: CND, Oxfam and Greenpeace all had a role, and he set aside a field for new age travellers. But many regard the following decade as the event's heyday, when gatecrashers swelled capacity to as many as 250,00 to witness career-transforming performances from the likes of Pulp, Robbie Williams, Oasis and Radiohead. Eavis missed the anarchy that ended with the erection of an impenetrable fence in 2002. "Young people who come here now are all well-behaved," he said. "They're A level students – motivated and ambitious." Despite years that saw flash floods, mass evacuations and riots with police, Eavis said last year's event, which almost failed to sell out, was his most difficult. A month before the gates opened, he faced a £5m shortfall. "We could have gone bankrupt," he said. "I got a cold sweat in the night, which I've never had before.

I thought: I'm killing myself over this." The failure to shift tickets was initially put down to Glastonbury's experiment with Jay-Z, a decision construed as a betrayal of the festival's rock traditions. Eavis said he only agreed to his daughter's pleas to bring Jay-Z to the farm because his preferred act – Radiohead – fell through. "It was either that or cancel the show," he said. "I knew she had sensible ideas so I had to go with that. It was the last throw of the dice for me. We either throw the dice or abandon the festival." It fell to Eavis to call that rapper's agent. "I had to ask how you pronounce it. 'Is it Jaze? Is it Jacy?'" Eavis said he stood firm when Jay-Z's agent offered him Kanye West instead. In then end Jay-Z triumphed, delivering a landmark performance credited with turning around the festival's fortunes. The success of the US rapper was also a coup for Emily, 29, who has gone from running the Park area of the festival to taking control of much of this year's line-up. Eavis and his wife, Liz, have meanwhile moved into a new house.

Her inheritance of the festival came a step closer when she moved into the farmhouse with her fiance, Nick Dewey, 36, earlier this year. Her father moved into another house with his wife, Liz. "I'm living on top of the hill now, away from the farm," Eavis said. "So [Emily's] taking over the house, which is nice. A new generation of Eavises can live here." He added: "I still feel I have an important role to play. Even if I go I'll worry about the drains, the rubbish, the recycling. There will be a gradual process of her and Nick taking it over." Eavis agreed that this year's "top three" headline acts – Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young and Blur – were "thoroughly, thoroughly predictable", but said they would please the event's traditionalist base. The mood on the seven farms that Eavis merges for the annual music pilgrimage has been remarkably calm in recent days, although Eavis he still felt slightly bemused at the thousands of workers who gather to prepare the fields. "I was out there at 7am this morning and there were all these people putting up marquees, generator tents, track fencing," he said, sipping tea.

"For a second I thought: what are all these people doing?" Here comes the sun Thursday and Friday should be sunny and warm, though there is a small risk of a heavy shower on Friday afternoon or evening. Festivalgoers should pack waterproofs and wellies as well as shorts and suncream, however, as heavy rain is threatening to return on Saturday and Sunday. Met Office forecaster Dean Snowden said: "At the weekend, there is a little bit more risk of catching showers and thunderstorms. It is a bit hit and miss but it must be stated there's a risk there. The weather will become increasingly unsettled, though it is going to be warm. You could get heavy showers." The Guardian is a sponsor of Glastonbury The bad news: heavy showers are highly likely throughout Friday. The good news: there is a much slimmer chance of rain for the rest of the weekend Published: 24 Jun 2009 According to the Met Office, the weather will be glorious – until the festival actually starts Published: 22 Jun 2009 Fancy spending a tenner on some terrifying noodles? No? Well read this Glastonbury blog then ...

Published: 24 Jun 2009 From T-Rex to Radiohead, the farmer who hosts the Glastonbury festival shares has favourite memories Published: 21 Jun 2009 Michael Eavis urges Glastonbury fans to use their vote on Europe | Music | The Guardian The Observer Michael Eavis urges Glastonbury fans to use their vote on Europe Glastonbury clashes with the referendum, but festival founder has plans to ensure visitors don’t miss out – and wants young people to vote to remain in EU Music fans planning to attend this year’s Glastonbury festival are being urged to make sure they cast their vote in the EU referendum. Photograph: Tabatha Fireman/Redferns via Getty Images Saturday 28 May 2016 15.35 EDT Last modified on Thursday 14 July 2016 22.29 EDT Close This article is 8 months old Michael Eavis , the Somerset farmer who runs the world’s biggest music festival, Glastonbury, has appealed to fans converging for this year’s event (from 22 to 26 June) to vote in the European Union referendum.

Brexit explained: young people Eavis and his festival have been the subject of concern from some political quarters – notably former Labour leader Neil Kinnock – because the gates for Glastonbury open the day before the referendum on Thursday 23 June, with music under way on the Friday morning. Lord Kinnock, who became a European commissioner and was vice-president of the European commission until 2004, said it would be a shame if young people were “rocking instead of voting”. The festival was arranged for its usual weekend, close to the summer solstice, long before the referendum date was chosen. “It has been like that for 47 years,” said Eavis. “Even Neil Kinnock should know that.” He added: “The people coming to our festival have to make sure they vote. The result of this referendum strongly affects their future – it’s so important for them and they’ve got to ensure they’re part of it. I do believe that the kids who come here will want to be involved. We have said it until we’re blue in the face: if you come, vote.” Eavis knows which box he would like voters to put their mark in.

“It’s so important that we vote to remain in the EU,” he said. “They need to get out there, get stuck into this, and vote to stay part of Europe.” There will not be a polling station at the festival, so Eavis and the festival organisers are strongly encouraging ticket holders to vote by post or by proxy if they plan to leave home before polling stations open. “The show doesn’t start until Friday morning, so most people, coming after work on Thursday, have got a day,” said Eavis. “Many of the people travelling here on Thursday to catch the opening will have time to vote earlier in the day. But those coming from farther away will have to make other arrangements – and they need make sure to get their postal vote organised.” Pinterest Michael Eavis, the Glastonbury festival organiser, believes young people should vote to stay in Europe. Photograph: David Levene for the Observer As with every other year in the weeks before the festival, fences go up, stages are built and Worthy Farm’s rolling meadows become fields of scaffolding, cranes and bustle.

And when it comes to voting in or out, Eavis has also addressed the matter of the “thousands of people who are already here getting the whole thing together”. In Goose Hall, the pre-festival catering site for staff and crew, Eavis has set up an information desk to help people already on site to register for a postal vote – the deadline is 3 June – and get their votes into the mail. If they fail to do this, however, there is still hope. “We’re going to need to organise buses to ship [those] people from here to the polls on referendum day, if they’re registered within reasonable reach of the site,” said Eavis. “That’s something we’re going to look at more closely. We’re going to do all we can to accommodate people needing assistance to vote.” Eavis, the son of a Methodist minister, grew up on Worthy Farm. He was inspired to launch Glastonbury after going to the Bath music festival in 1970, where the line-up included Jefferson Airplane, the Byrds and Led Zeppelin. His first “Glastonbury Fair” brought David Bowie, Traffic, Hawkwind and other artists to the farm.

Since then, Eavis has become a national institution – and a local one. He is at ease in the town of Glastonbury, four miles from his Worthy Farm at Pilton, often calling at Knight’s Fish and Chips restaurant – regularly voted “best in the west” – opposite the festival office, for a chat with townsfolk and music fans. Jeremy Corbyn officially confirmed for Glastonbury Read more Speaking of his own position on the referendum, and glad to urge his festival fans to agree with him, Eavis said: “I’m deeply for ‘In Europe’. In with both feet. It’s not for my sake – I’ve nearly finished; I’ve been on the go at this for 50 years – it’s for them. “I think most people who come to our festival are reasonably intelligent. And as such, they must realise that our future must be part of this European ideal. “I can understand the OAP – with a little house in Margate and a picture of the Queen on the mantelpiece – wanting to be little England again. I accept all that. But it’s the past: that’s just rainy old windswept Margate talking.

This referendum is about the future, in which we have to be part of the bigger picture, a continent of opportunities, languages, colours, excitements and exchanges.” With direct regard to the job he does for the rest of the year, Eavis added: “I also need to vote for Europe as a farmer. Farming would be dead in the water if we left the EU. We’d be flooded even more with rock-bottom cheap stuff from Singapore and all over. For farming, this is a serious moment. “And my God, I need the Poles I have working here,” he added. “There are about six of them, and they’re fantastic. Up when we have to be at half-past three in the morning, on time, no problems, no fagging out in the barn. I don’t know what I’d do without them.

No – we’ve got to vote, and we’ve got to stay in.” Festivalgoers will wear Bowie masks at event on Saturday, and Glastonbury also planning celebrations of his life and work Published: 10 Jun 2016 Organisers of this year’s festival say hundreds of tributes to the three stars will be staged throughout the event Published: 5 Jun 2016 As the full Glastonbury lineup is revealed, the festival organiser discusses this year’s tributes and the event’s future plans Published: 31 May 2016 With 1,000 musical, literary and foodie events lined up for this summer, Britain is taking its unquenchable enthusiasm for fun in a field to new heights Published: 29 May 2016 Video: Michael Eavis: 'Glastonbury Festival may need a new home' - Telegraph Since Glastonbury first started in 1970, millions of people have come here to Worthy Farm - the home of festival founder Michael Eavis. The festival has hosted some of the biggest bands in the world.

Glastonbury 2015 line-up: the ultimate guide But Eavis says it could soon be time for Glastonbury to find a new home. "I'm always worried about the future, about the land not being available really, because I only own the middle bit, so that's me where the Pyramid (stage) is," he says. "I may have to find a site that's bigger and it's all under the control of one person. I mean that's the ideal situation really. So that might happen in the long term." Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis (Glastonbury/PA Wire) Back in 1970 visitors at the first festival were given a free pint of milk when they arrived. This year, tickets for the festival cost £225. The ultimate Glastonbury packing list Paul Stokes, the associate editor of Q Magazine, says moving the festival would be a risk. "They've got to be really careful if they do choose to move away from that site, because forget the stone circle, what really makes that site unique is having the fact that Michael Eavis's house is at the top of the hill," he says.

"I think people love that about the festival, that real family connection to the event, the fact that you know who the guy who runs the festival is, rather than it being a sort of faceless corporation that you get in some other events around the world." Eavis says he doesn't want to move, but he's worried the land around Worthy Farm might not always be available. Will it be on to pastures new for Glastonbury? He says he's looking into alternative sites in locations that he won't disclose, but there's no timeframe yet for a possible future move. Glastonbury has grown from a small festival to one of the biggest events in the live music calendar "All good things come to an end, and one has to make changes. To alter your life you have to make changes at some point. I would love it to stay here, you know, but it's getting very, very complicated now." As festival-goers gear up for this year's event, Eavis's land will once again soon be packed with tents and music-lovers. But there may come a time when these fields are quiet and empty all year round.

Michael Eavis - IMDb IMDb 17 January 2017 4:34 PM, UTC NEWS Michael Eavis was born on October 17, 1935. He is known for his work on Glastonbury (2006), A Curious Life (2014) and Glastonbury 2010 (2010). See full bio » Born: a list of 740 people created 10 May 2012 Do you have a demo reel? Add it to your IMDbPage How much of Michael Eavis's work have you seen?

User Polls Michael Jackson: King of Pop Himself - Glastonbury Festival Founder (2009) 2004 Glastonbury Calling (TV Series documentary) (festival organiser) Hide 2016 Glastonbury 2016 (TV Mini-Series) Himself 2015 Glastonbury 2015 (TV Series) Himself - Spectator 2015 Points West (TV Series) Himself 2014 Private View (TV Series short) Himself 2013 The One Show (TV Series) Himself - Contributor(Glastonbury Festival founder) 2010 Glastonbury 2010 (TV Mini-Series) Himself 2009 Michael Jackson: King of Pop (TV Movie documentary) Himself - Glastonbury Festival Founder 2006 This Morning (TV Series) Himself 1998-2004 Jools's Annual Hootenanny (TV Series) Himself 2004 NME Awards 2004 (TV Movie) Himself 1992 World in Action (TV Series documentary) Himself - Glastonbury Festival - The New Age Trav

ellers (1992) ...

Himself - Glastonbury Festival Related Videos Did You Know? Trivia: He was awarded the C.B.E. (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2007 Queen Elizabeth Birthday Honors List for his services to the Glastonbury Festival. Star Sign: Michael Eavis opens Bath and West | West Country - ITV News 1 June 2016 at 10:37am Michael Eavis opens Bath and West President Michaeal Eavis opened the show Photo: ITV West Country Michael Eavis - the founder of Glastonbury festival - is also the President of the Royal Bath and West show. He's not only the man behind the world famous music event but is also an award winning dairy farmer. It was down to him to get proceedings underway and officially open the show. He says bad weather at the Bath and West usually means good weather for Glastonbury!

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Michael Eavis: Godfather of Glastonbury Printable version Michael Eavis: Godfather of Glastonbury The Glastonbury festival organiser, a 71-year-old Methodist dairy farmer with a penchant for Radiohead, has been made a CBE in the Queen's birthday honours. Eavis has been running the Glastonbury festival since 1970 Glastonbury is the undoubted daddy of all UK music festivals - with 175,000 music fans, some of the world's greatest bands and an atmosphere that is ever-evolving yet still somehow unique. More than a festival, a rite of passage. Enjoyed, sometimes endured, by generations of gilded youth. But none of its trademarks - the pop stars, poets, socialites, stilt-walkers and all the rest, would come together in such a manner each June without the benign presence of the festival's creator and guiding light, Michael Eavis. Mr Eavis is probably the best-known - certainly the best-loved - music promoter in the world.

The proud owner of the 600-acre Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, he has been welcoming festival-goers to his patch since 1970. Back in those days, entrance was ï¿½1 and came with a free pint of milk thrown in. Today, a ticket will set you back ï¿½145. More than 175,000 people will attend this year's event The first year, the loon-panted, tied-dyed hippy crowd of 1,500 swayed to bands like T Rex and Al Stewart, as well as the now-forgotten Amazing Blondel and Steamhammer. Farmer Eavis is resolutely a local man. Born in 1935, he was educated at the Cathedral School in nearby Wells and then a merchant naval college. He sailed the world, working for the Union Castle shipping line, before inheriting the farm on his father's death in 1958. In 1969, he and his second wife Jean spent a day at the Bath Blues Festival. So impressed were they that they decided to hold their own festival, at home, the following year.

Thus, a day after the death of Jimi Hendrix, a legend was born. Best bib and tucker: Michael Eavis enjoys a night out at home Michael Eavis says his motives were simple: "I liked pop music and people, so it seemed like a good idea to put the two together. It was all quite naive when we started, we really hadn't a clue." There was another incentive too. But despite predicting that "this is the quickest way of clearing my overdraft", Mr Eavis lost ï¿½1,500. Although it thrived during the 1970s, Glastonbury really took-off in the 1980s. Seen by many as a rallying-point against Thatcherism, its pro-CND stance - guided by Eavis - brought political, as well as musical, relevance. And acts like Aswad, Elvis Costello and Billy Bragg combined pop and polemics. The festival still has a conscience, with millions of pounds raised for Greenpeace, Oxfam and Water Aid in recent years. Still crazy after all these years But it has also seen its fair share of strife.

Travellers rioted in 1990, the Pyramid Stage burnt down just 10 days before the 1994 event, while in 2001 it was cancelled because of security fears. Today, a vast fence surrounds the site and, this year, Mr Eavis introduced a tough new ticketing regime to combat touts. The curator was accused of "selling out" when he invited the Mean Fiddler group to manage the festival's security and logistics in 2002. But in reality, Mean Fiddler made the festival more organised and it probably would not have been allowed to continue without them. Mr Eavis insists the event is now cleaner, safer and better run than ever. Labour candidate "He's incredible. Such a public figure - just like Santa," says former NME editor Steve Sutherland. "He's generous, egalitarian, but a canny character. One minute he can be as hard as nails, the next he plays the naive farmer.

All to get what he wants, the best for the festival." Glastonbury calling: Eavis' festival is heard around the world Over the years, he has hand-picked acts like Bob Dylan, David Bowie and Oasis, while turning others down. In 2003, he said "thanks, but no thanks" to none other than Sir Paul McCartney. A number of years ago, another Beatle, the late George Harrison, received the same answer. But the man, like the festival, is about more than just music. He remains a committed environmentalist and stood for the Labour Party in Wells at the 1997 general election, losing but adding 16,000 to the party's vote. Now married for a third time, Michael Eavis has eight children - the youngest of whom, Emily, has followed her father's footsteps by becoming a key figure in the festival.

As Steve Sutherland puts it: "Ask anyone and they'll agree that the unique spirit at Glastonbury is mostly down to Michael." Glastonbury could end in 2020, says Michael Eavis - Telegraph Glastonbury Glastonbury could end in 2020, says Michael Eavis Michael Eavis says that they will 'see what happens' after the festival's 50th anniversary in six years time Dolly Parton at Glastonbury 2014 Photo: AFP/Getty Image By Agencies 3:52PM BST 29 Jun 2014 Glastonbury could come to an end in 2020, Michael Eavis has suggested as he admitted that there is too much of health and safety at the festival. Mr Eavis has said that despite the rain this year’s event was ''great success'' and he has already secured next year's headliners sorted. But the farmer, who put on the first festival at his farm in 1970, said that the festival’s fiftieth year could be its last.

Asked about the future, the 78-year-old, who organises the event with his daughter Emily, said: ''We've got a few more years. ''Myself, I think I can run another six years, which would take me up to about 50 years.. and then see what happens after that.'' On Friday night, some of the live sets were stopped because of thunder and lightning, a situation Mr Eavis said would not have happened several years ago. He told the Guardian : “Too many health and safety these days. We wouldn't have stopped it years ago, would we? I don't know whether we should have stopped it or not. It was a shame, but it was only for an hour." Mr Eavis said the 44th festival had been a ''great success again, in spite of the mud and everything''. ''But we have had wetter years than this,'' he added. ''Everybody loves it - the fans that come, the bands that played. The best place to be really, basically.'' He as sworn to secrecy about who next year’s headliners were, but said one band was not British and Prince was not among them although he remained hopeful that Prince would one day play.

''We're always having a go at Prince, but you know it's up to him whether he wants to do it or not. ''Most of the people in the world want to play here so I did ask him to hop on the train and come down to Castle Cary station and I'll show him around the farm some time. ''It hasn't been taken up yet though.'' He went on: ''We've got three headliners for next year already. And that's without Prince. ''I had an agent yesterday on the platform on the stage, I was watching Metallica and he was saying my band want it next year. ''I can't tell you who they are. The band are not British.'' Asked about Metallica's top spot on the Pyramid Stage on Saturday, he said the heavy metallers had played ''like their lives depended on it''. He previously defended the decision to have Metallica as one of this year's three headliners on the Pyramid Stage, saying no other band had ever been so ''keen'' to play. He said: ''I thought they put so much into it, it was like their lives depended upon it. ''They just delivered a show and people loved it.

''I promised them the chance to come about 20 years ago and so the time was now. We could give them the slot this time for the first time. ''I think they filled it very, very well. Extremely well. So I think we're lucky to have them actually.''

Question: For what is Michael Eavis best known in the music world?
Answer: The Glastonbury Festival